>From the “Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships,”
(1969) Vol. 4, p.57.
LAPON
Lapon: A scorpion fish of the Pacific coast of
America.
SSN-661
Displacement: 4,640 t.
Length: 292’2”
Beam: 31’7”
Draft: 28’8”
Complement: 107
Armament: 4 21” torpedo tubes; SUBROC
Class: STURGEON
LAPON was laid down 26 July 1965 by Newport News
Shipbuilding & Drydock Co., Newport News, Va.; launched 16
December 1966; sponsored by Mrs. Charles D. Griffin; and
commissioned 14 December 1967, Comdr. Chester M. Mack in
command.
Upon commissioning, LAPON reported to Commander,
Submarine Force, Atlantic Fleet for duty, with her homeport
at Norfolk, Va. She spent most of 1968 going through
training programs and cruising along the east coast of the
United States. Into 1969, she is preparing for a
Mediterranean deployment and will join the 6th Fleet.
[Deactivated while still in commission on 1 October
1991, LAPON was decommissioned on 25 June 1992 and stricken
from the Naval Vessel Register the following 8 August. She
is stored at Bremerton, Washington, awaiting her start in
the Navy’s Nuclear Powered Ship and Submarine Recycling
Program.
Internet web site:
United States Naval & Shipbuilding Museum
www.uss-salem.org/worldnav/usa/decom.htm
Transcribed by Michael Hansen
mhansen2@home.com